Quinshon Judkins — Week 1: Twelve Carries and Not One Longer Than Five
2026 NFL Season · Half-PPR Scoring · Monday, Sep 14
Judkins carried twelve times for thirty-three yards Sunday, longest run five, three of the twelve successful, and caught both of his targets for seventeen. His one carry inside the ten went two yards on second and four from the Jacksonville five, and the drive ended in a field goal, in a 34–10 loss to the Jaguars.
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Cleveland's only run from inside the 10 on Sunday belonged to Quinshon Judkins, and it went two yards. Third quarter, nine 26 left, second and four at the Jacksonville five, Browns down 31 to nothing, on the first Cleveland drive to reach the red zone: up the middle to the three, Joshua Hines-Allen and Ruke Orhorhoro on the tackle. Cleveland then took a delay of game, threw incomplete on third and seven, and kicked a 26-yard field goal. The carry was worth −0.4 expected points added — expected points added is what a play was worth given down, distance and field position — and it was the closest the Browns' ground game got to the end zone all day.
The line: 12 carries, 33 yards, no touchdowns, longest run five. The 12 went four, five, four, none, one, −1, two, three, four, three, three and five. Three of the 12 were successful, meaning they gained what the down and distance asked, and one produced a first down — three yards on second and one from the Cleveland 30 with three 22 left, on the drive that ended in Denzel Boston's touchdown. The 12 carries came out at −2.7 expected points. He was thrown to twice and caught both: one yard on second and 11 late in the first quarter, and 16 yards on first and 10 from the 33 with two 44 left, the longest play of his day.
The split: Judkins 12, Deshaun Watson six, KC Concepcion three, Raheim Sanders one. Cleveland ran 22 times for 87 yards, eight before halftime and 14 after, all 14 of the second-half runs coming with the Browns down 31. Judkins had five carries in the first half and seven in the second. 12 of the 13 running-back carries were his, and the one that was not — Sanders on third and two at the Jacksonville 25 — went one yard. Watson's six carries, three of them scrambles, gained 38 and were worth +4.2; the 12 handoffs to Judkins were worth −2.7.
Back in June the preview called Judkins a real workhorse at a fair price: a rookie season built on volume, 14 games in a lead role. Sunday the volume held — 12 of 13 running-back carries, both of his targets caught — and the yards did not: 33, and nothing longer than five. One game against one defense, in a game Cleveland trailed from the first quarter, is not a verdict on the yards. The workload it does confirm. Cleveland is at the Buccaneers on Sunday the twentieth; the number to watch is the longest run.
_Data via nflverse._
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